Case Report: Surgical Treatment for Intranasal Meningoencephalocele in a Cat

Abstract

A 4-month-old cat with epileptic seizures and nasal discharge was presented, and diagnosed with intranasal meningoencephalocele based on the clinical symptoms and findings of CT and MRI. As liquorrhea was suspected, the meningoencephalocele was surgically excised and the postoperative course was favorable. For cribriform plate reconstruction, the autologous tunica vaginalis was used. Rhinorrhea of the cerebrospinal fluid and seizures disappeared after surgery. On CT and MRI at 7 months after surgery, septum formation between the cranial and nasal cavities was confirmed. Currently, no seizures have occurred even though no oral antiepileptic agent was administered. There are few reports of surgical treatment for meningoencephalitis, and there are no reports of reconstruction of the cribriform plate using tunica vaginalis, so we reported the details.

Polysulfone tailor-made implant for the surgical correction of a frontoparietal meningoencephalocoele in a cat

“…Although MEC/MCs have been described in dogs and cats, 1 – 12 and also occasionally reported in other species, including calves, 14 – 18 pigs, 19 a rabbit 20 and a raccoon, 21 most of those animals were euthanased or treated conservatively. Medical management has been suggested for 22 dogs with MC/MEC and mild neurological signs.…”

“… 2 However, 73% of those dogs suffered an intranasal MEC and only 27% had the parietal bone affected; all of them with only meninges protruding through the parietal bone defect. 2 On the other hand, surgical correction has only been described in two dogs, 8 , 10 two cats 1 , 11 and two calves. 15 , 17 The scarce number of MEC cases described in the veterinary literature precludes any conclusion regarding the best treatment option for this pathology, and needs to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.…”

“…Both surgically treated dogs described previously, 8 , 10 and one of the cats, 11 suffered from an ethmoidal MEC and seizures, which were repaired after resection of the herniated tissue. In one of these dogs 8 and the cat, 11 seizures resolved after surgical resection; however, seizure frequency did not change after surgery in the other dog, 10 which was attributed to the development of additional seizure foci as the dog had been seizing 36 months prior to the surgery. Finally, the sole cat reported with a parietal MEC had only a small amount of protruded brain tissue, and an abrupt resolution of aggressiveness was also observed after surgical resection of the herniated tissue.…”

“…Meningocoele (MC)/MEC is a relatively uncommon disease reported in companion animals, 1 – 12 and only four cases of surgical correction have been described. 1 , 8 , 10 , 11 Although a multicentric retrospective study involving 22 dogs suggested that medical management could be an option for dogs with MC/MEC and mild neurological signs, 2 surgical intervention is considered the treatment of choice in human medicine. 13 …”

Case Report: Detection of Transferrin in a Dog Suspected of Having Cerebrospinal Fluid Rhinorrhea

“…There have been only a few reports of diagnosis and treatment of CSF rhinorrhea in dogs and cats (7,9). In the present case, CSF rhinorrhea was suspected based on clinical signs and MRI findings.…”